Monica Lewisky breaks silence on Clinton scandal

Updated 1:43 pm, Tuesday, May 6, 2014

Rumors are swirling that Monica Lewinsky will soon write a tell-all book about her relationship with President Bill Clinton.

Media: San Francisco Chronicle

Monica Lewinsky says there's no question her boss — Bill Clinton — "took advantage" of her when he was president.

But she says their affair was consensual and if there was any abuse involved, it came afterward, when Clinton's inner circle tried to discredit her and the president's opponents used her as a political pawn.

The former White House intern, now 40, writes about her life in the next issue of Vanity Fair magazine, out this month. In released excerpts, she says she's perhaps the first Internet era scapegoat and wants to speak out on behalf of other victims of online humiliation.

Her willingness to step forward may come at an inopportune time as former first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton considers running for president. Republicans have signaled they don't consider her husband's scandal from the late 1990s out of bounds in the realm of 2016-style political dialogue.

Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, a likely GOP presidential contender, answered criticisms of the Republican record on women's issues by saying in January that the last Democratic president engaged in "predatory behavior" with a woman, Lewinsky, who was 22 when her liaisons with Clinton began in 1995. Clinton's lies about the relationship contributed to his impeachment by the House in 1998; the Senate acquitted him.

Photo: Mario Magnani, Getty Images

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Former White House intern Monica Lewinsky leaves the 2000 New York Magazine Awards December 4, 2000 at Studio 8H at Rockefeller Center in New York City.

Former White House intern Monica Lewinsky leaves the 2000 New York Magazine Awards December 4, 2000 at Studio 8H at Rockefeller Center in New York City.

Photo: Mario Magnani, Getty Images

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MONICA LEWINSKY TO HOST NEW TV SERIES MR PERSONALITY

MONICA LEWINSKY TO HOST NEW TV SERIES MR PERSONALITY

Photo: HO

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Darrell Hammond performs a skit with Monica Lewinsky during the May 8, 1999, broadcast of Saturday Night Live, in New York.

Darrell Hammond performs a skit with Monica Lewinsky during the May 8, 1999, broadcast of Saturday Night Live, in New York.

Photo: MARY ELLEN MATTHEWS, Associated Press

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During a press conference with Nigeria's President Olusegun Obasanjo at the White House, Thursday, October 28, 1999, President Clinton defends assertions that the Monica Lewinsky scandal has hurt Al Gore's candidacy for the presidency. President Clinton acknowledges that his impeachment scandal may hurt Vice President Al Gore's election hopes, saying 'a lot of people who may not like me may hold it against him.' But Clinton says people should not be held responsible for the conduct of others. less

During a press conference with Nigeria's President Olusegun Obasanjo at the White House, Thursday, October 28, 1999, President Clinton defends assertions that the Monica Lewinsky scandal has hurt Al Gore's ... more

Photo: J. SCOTT APPLEWHITE, AP

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President Clinton was caught up in a scandal involving with Monica Lewinsky. Nuff said.

President Clinton was caught up in a scandal involving with Monica Lewinsky. Nuff said.

Photo: J. SCOTT APPLEWHITE, AP

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Monica Lewinsky

Monica Lewinsky

Photo: Christian Charisius, Reuters

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384480 01: No Syndication France Or Germany 11/6/96 Washington Dc, Usa Pic Shows Clinton Hugging Monica Lewinsky. The Latest Video To Turn Up Of Us President Bill Clinton Together With Monica Lewinsky, The Woman With Whom He Is Alleged To Have Had An Illicit Affair, Is From November 6, 1996. The White House Staff Had Assembled On The Lawn To Congratulate The President A Day After His Re-Election Victory And The Event Was Video Taped. Meanwhile, The White House Sex Scandal On Saturday (1/24) Went Behind Closed Doors For Intense Legal Negotiations Over Protection For Lewinsky. The Struggle Was Between Independent Counsel Ken Starr And Monica Lewinsky'S Lawyer William Ginsburg. Ginsburg Is Demanding Immunity For His Client. Lewinsky Has Been Subpoeaned To Testify Before The Grand Jury Next Tuesday, Putting Pressure On Both Sides To Cut A Deal Before Then. Clinton'S Attorney Robert Bennett Saturday Accused Starr -- A Republican -- Of Trying To Get Lewinsky To Change Her Story For Vindictive And Partisan Purposes. He Tried To Refocus The Issue On Starr'S Tactics. "Everybody Can Bend If Placed Under Enough Pressure To Bend And Mr. Starr Seems Hell-Bent On Getting President Clinton," He Said. Also Saturday A New York Literary Agent, Lucianne Goldberg, Told Reporters That She Was The One Who Told Linda Tripp To Tape Her Conversations With Lewinsky As A Way Of Protecting Herself If All Of This Became Public. Goldberg Described Herself As A Friend Of Tripp' (Photo By Getty Images) less

384480 01: No Syndication France Or Germany 11/6/96 Washington Dc, Usa Pic Shows Clinton Hugging Monica Lewinsky. The Latest Video To Turn Up Of Us President Bill Clinton Together With Monica Lewinsky, The ... more

Photo: Getty Images

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**FILE**Monica Lewinsky attends a film premiere in New York on Nov. 2, 2003. Lewinsky has been accepted for a one-year master's degree course in London, the London School of Economic and Political Science confirmed Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2005. Classes will begin the first week of October. (AP Photo/Mike Appleton) less

**FILE**Monica Lewinsky attends a film premiere in New York on Nov. 2, 2003. Lewinsky has been accepted for a one-year master's degree course in London, the London School of Economic and Political Science ... more

Photo: MIKE APPLETON

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Photo: AP1998

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KRT NEWS STORY SLUGGED: CLINTON KRT PHOTOGRAPH BY CHUCK KENNEDY (KRT16) WASHINGTON, January 26 With first lady Hillary Clinton looking on, President Bill Clinton denies having sex with former White House intern Monica Lewinsky, or engaging in any kind of coverup, during a White House event on child care proposals Monday at the White House. (KRT) AP, PL, RTR, BL (chb21315) 1998 (COLOR) HOUCHRON CAPTION (01/27/1998): President Clinton stands with first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton on Monday as he adamantly denies having an affair with Monica Lewinsky. _TAG:HILLARY CLINTON _TAG:PRESIDENT BILL CLINTON _TAG:CLINTON

A photograph showing former White House intern Monica Lewinsky meeting President Bill Clinton at a White House function submitted as evidence in documents by the Starr investigation and released by the House Judicary committee September 21, 1998.

A photograph showing former White House intern Monica Lewinsky meeting President Bill Clinton at a White House function submitted as evidence in documents by the Starr investigation and released by the House

FILE - In this Aug. 27, 2008, file photo, former President Bill Clinton speaks at the Democratic National Convention in Denver. The way Democrats and Republicans treat their ex-presidents at convention time reflects each man's personal popularity and also how well he's weathered changes in party politics. It helps to be a dynamite speaker, too. Clinton scores on all three: his speeches are rousing, if long; his popularity extends to coveted independent voters; and his centrist appeal plays well across today's Democratic Party. It's no wonder that Democrats are have forgiven, if not forgotten, that business about Monica Lewinsky and impeachment that seemed to have permanently marred his presidency as it ended a dozen years ago. (Charlie Neibergall / Associated Press) less

FILE - In this Aug. 27, 2008, file photo, former President Bill Clinton speaks at the Democratic National Convention in Denver. The way Democrats and Republicans treat their ex-presidents at convention time ... more

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1998: The White House was engulfed in the Monica Lewinsky sex scandal. Hillary stood by her man publicly, and no one cared about her hair.

1998: The White House was engulfed in the Monica Lewinsky sex scandal. Hillary stood by her man publicly, and no one cared about her hair.

Photo: DOUG MILLS, AP File Photo

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Bill Clinton's final State of the Union in 2000 marked a return to the activist agenda he outlined in his first speeches to Congress, after two years in which the speech was overshadowed by the Monica Lewinsky scandal. less

Bill Clinton's final State of the Union in 2000 marked a return to the activist agenda he outlined in his first speeches to Congress, after two years in which the speech was overshadowed by the Monica Lewinsky ... more

Photo: The Washington Post, Getty

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ELLICOTT CITY, UNITED STATES: Monica Lewinsky(R) leaves the Howard County Courthouse in Ellicott City, MD 16 December, 1999 after testifying in the Linda Tripp wire tapping trial. Tripp is on trial for violating Maryland state wire tapping laws when she taped telephone conversations with Lewinsky about Lewinsky's relationship with US President Bill Clinton. Lewinsky testified that she never gave Tripp permission to tape their conversations. AFP PHOTO/Manny CENETA less

ELLICOTT CITY, UNITED STATES: Monica Lewinsky(R) leaves the Howard County Courthouse in Ellicott City, MD 16 December, 1999 after testifying in the Linda Tripp wire tapping trial. Tripp is on trial for ... more

Photo: MANNY CENETA, Getty

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Bill Clinton went from defending himself against Monica Lewinsky allegations to dealing with Bono imitations.

Bill Clinton went from defending himself against Monica Lewinsky allegations to dealing with Bono imitations.

Photo: MARK LENNIHAN, File Photos

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Monica Lewisky breaks silence on Clinton scandal

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Lewinsky writes that she deeply regrets the affair and made a point of staying silent through several presidential campaigns to avoid becoming a distraction. Now, she writes, it's time to stop "tiptoeing around my past — and other people's futures. I am determined to have a different ending to my story. I've decided, finally, to stick my head above the parapet."

Invoking her headwear from endlessly repeated TV clips and the stained garment considered as evidence against Clinton, she writes: "It's time to burn the beret and bury the blue dress."

But these aren't her first public words on the scandal. Lewinsky broke her silence in 1999 with a blockbuster interview with Barbara Walters, gave several subsequent interviews and cooperated with author Andrew Morton on his book the same year, entitled "Monica's Story."

"Sure, my boss took advantage of me," she writes now, "but I will always remain firm on this point: it was a consensual relationship. Any 'abuse' came in the aftermath, when I was made a scapegoat in order to protect his powerful position."